Well, I knew it would happen, but it happened really quickly this time. Either I'm losing patience as I age, or this one's an *even* smarter cookie than the first two...SLEEPING ISSUES at 2 weeks!! Ugh, Eden is so addicted to being held/walked to sleep that she wakes instantly, or after 15 minutes at most, upon being laid down...even if she's thoroughly, completely, long-time asleep. In arms...nice nap. Today I got two 20 minute naps out of her between 11am and 7pm. That is not enough sleep for a newborn (in case you didn't know). So now she is wildly overtired and won't sleep more than 5 minutes, even in arms, without waking up crying and irritable. So how do you get past that with a 2 week old? I am just not in the cry-it-out camp for babies this little and don't believe it works...believe me as soon as we hit the 10-12 week zone I'll be parking her in the crib and shutting the door. But I CAN'T be in the carry-24-7 camp because I have two other kids to take care of (and sanity to preserve!!!). The magic swing that largely solved the issue for Asher works no magic for her. I am stumped, and 1 day of it was all it took to drive me to the brink. I tried for two hours to get her to go down in the cozy little newborn bed tonight with some BabyWhisperer shush-patting, but she knew exactly what was going on and wanted no part of it. Took two hours to break me.
How can I not know how to handle newborn sleeping on my 3RD kid?!!!! Do I have crazy non-self-soothing children, or do other people just not complain about this? So stumped. The scary part? MOM'S STILL HERE! How does one do this on one's own?
In an attempt to remember that she's totally worth it and that I don't regret having another baby, here are today's snapshots :) Aww, she is sweet isn't she?
p.s. Oh, did I mention Owen had a 24 hour fever/vomiting bug yesterday/last night? When it rains, it pours! I'm not going on much sleep here, so give me some grace for the dramatic post.
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8 comments:
Yeah, there's that, but trust me, wearing the baby may work for a few hours a day, but having to do it all day every day is no picnic, and it's not that easy to care for other kids and cook, even with a newborn strapped on, much less once she grows. I can do that a little, but not ALL the time. Which is currently what the requirement would be :}
Yup, swaddle professionals :} Wish there was an easy answer, but probably just a marathon...has been with the other two ;) Thanks for the ideas!!
Yikes! Hope it's just a very short phase that she outgrows soon....as in a couple days, please. :) My kids always had days and nights mixed up in the beginning but at least they slept in the day. Ugh - I feel for you!!! Hang in there, tough mama!
So sorry! Ella did this to me, too, but she was at 6 months so I agree in some ways that makes it easier. Come to think of it, I also remember an *entire* day of walking around and around in circles in the playroom while bouncing/rocking newborn Aili on my shoulder so with just one day, not all hope is lost.
As far as thinking that on the third baby you should have this figured out by now - I remember thinking *exactly* the same thing about nursing - so if you're incompetent then so am I. :) The things is, this baby is different. It will take you some to figure out what exactly this little one needs, but you have already proven you can do it! Also I tried "wearing" Aili and it just made it worse, so don't feel bad if that won't work for you either.
So I feel like I should offer a suggestion. :) Maybe try 15 minutes of holding, 15 minutes in the swing where you don't feel guilty if she fusses because it is only for a little while, 15 minutes of holding, etc. With a little bit of flexibility of holding her for a full half hour if that's the only way she gets a nap. And of course if she gets happy in the swing or somewhere else let her stay longer!
Okay, this is obviously too long for a blog post. I must think I know too much. :)
It's always so hard, but it's also always temporary, thank goodness. The trick is keeping your sanity until its over.... You can do it! Don't hesitate to ask for help, either!
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